Howard Stern's 'America's Got Talent' hiring is 'desperate', says PTC

The infamous shock jock was announced as Piers Morgan's replacement on the NBC show earlier today (December 15), in what the standards organization described as an "act of desperation for a flailing network".

In a statement to TMZ, the PTC argued that Stern should not be allowed on primetime TV as "a performer who is synonymous with shock, profanity and obscenity."

The message continued: "The once-proud broadcast network [NBC] has lost its way and has made it clear it holds no concern whatsoever for children and families."

"The result will be the alienation of tens of millions of advertising dollars," president Tim Winter said. "Any short-term buzz from Stern's shock value will result in a longer-term decline as families abandon the show for more suitable programming.

"Bringing Stern to a program like America's Got Talent is decidedly a bad business decision."

Stern will appear alongside current judges Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel when America's Got Talent returns to NBC in the summer of 2012.